Not one usually to second-guess himself, Lurie said if he had to do it over again, he never would have brought Owens to Philadelphia. The Eagles went to the Super Bowl during Owens' first year and then fell to 6-10 during last season, in which Owens' presence or absence created a circus-like atmosphere.

"Looking back on it, you could say there was one year that was great and the second year was a disaster," said Lurie during a nearly 30-minute news conference. "Nobody should be able to be as disruptive and really cut the energy of a team down like what happened this past year. So I think we all learned from that."

We're not so such we'd feel the same way, were we in Lurie's position: Owens did, after all, put the team in a position to go to a Super Bowl that year, and he played his can off in the big game while practically sporting a broken leg. But we do love it when owners have that sudden realization that the obsessive tyrannical leadership that brought them so much success in the private sector simply doesn't fly when your employees, uh, absolutely do not have to listen to you.